Win 11 Home PC and P1102W printer do not communicate w one another

[WillyBII]

I have hopelessly tried to print from my win 11 home pc to my LaserJet Pro P1102W printer. I had HP on the phone w me for an hour one day. No matter what i have tried the pc will simply not print to this printer. I have installed the software that is on the web. The pc does not recognize the printer. I have even tried to do it wirelessly. The strange thing is i can email the doc to my iphone, then send the doc from my iphone to the printer. So the wifi signal on the printer is fine. I installed a wifi usb on to my pc to see if that would help the situation. Nope. Does anyone have an idea of what they have done to get the pc to print to this printer. I did look on line and this printer is NOT listed as compatible w win 11 however I have read some blogs that folks claim they were able to get it to do so. 

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @WillyBII,

Welcome to the HP Support Community!

Thanks for reaching out!

We're thrilled to have the opportunity to assist you and provide a solution.

I understand your Windows 11 Home PC will not communicate with the LaserJet Pro P1102w even though the printer prints from your iPhone. Let’s go through a few focused steps to isolate and fix the PC→printer communication.

Make sure both devices are on the same Wi-Fi network
Confirm the PC’s Wi-Fi SSID matches the printer’s network (not a guest or 5 GHz only SSID).
Different subnets or AP isolation will prevent direct printing even when the printer is reachable by other devices.

Restart Print Spooler on the PC
Open Services (type Services in Start), find Print Spooler, right-click → Restart.
This clears stuck jobs and refreshes the Windows print subsystem.

Remove all old/duplicate printer entries and drivers
Open Settings → Bluetooth & devices → Printers & scanners and remove the P1102w entry.
Open Print Server Properties → Drivers (or Device Manager > View > Show hidden devices) and uninstall related HP drivers to avoid conflicts.

Install HP Smart from Microsoft Store (or HP Universal Print Driver PCL6)
HP Smart will auto-discover many HP printers; install it and use “Add printer” first.
If HP Smart fails, install the HP Universal Print Driver (PCL6) and continue to the manual add steps below.

Get the printer’s IP address (from router or print/config page)
Print a Network Configuration or Wireless Summary page from the printer (or see your router’s connected devices).
You need the printer’s IP for a direct TCP/IP install.

Add the printer by TCP/IP address (manual install)
Settings → Printers & scanners → Add device → “The printer that I want isn’t listed” → Add a printer using TCP/IP address.
Use the printer IP, set Device type = TCP/IP Device, select the previously installed HP driver when prompted.

Test a local USB connection (if available) to confirm driver compatibility
Connect the printer with a USB cable directly to the PC and power cycle it once.
If Windows still won’t install it, try the Universal PCL6 driver again while USB is connected.

Temporarily disable Windows Firewall / security software for testing
Turn off firewall/antivirus briefly and try discovery or the TCP/IP print.
Some security suites block mDNS/WSD discovery used by older HP printers.

I hope this helps.

I'm glad I could help! 😊 If this resolved your issue, please mark it as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" on "Was this reply helpful?" Your feedback not only keeps us going but also helps others find the solution faster! 👍✨

Take care and have an amazing day ahead! 🚀

Best regards,

[WillyBII]

Thank you for the proposed solution. I will attempt to perform the steps this evening. I do two other questions.

1.  I have the pc connected to the printer via a usb cable. When I run the installation software a window pops up of less than one second and says the pc is connected. However 30 seconds or so later a window pops up and says the connection has failed. I go to test print something and the only printer that pops up is a Microsoft to PDF, which we all know is not correct. Have you had this issue come up w any other person calling in about windows 11 and using a usb cable and having a similar experience? And if so what has been the solution?

2. I looked at the list of printers on the HP website that are compatible w windows 11. The P1102W is is not listed. I am bringing this up merely for the fact I read on the web where some folks say they have had success yet I have not had any success whatsoever. Let me know if the list on the web for printers compatible w windows 11 is outdated. I hope there is a solution because i do not want to have to trash my 1102W printer. It has been a great asset.  

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi @WillyBII,

I understand your Windows 11 Home PC is not communicating with the HP LaserJet Pro P1102w, even over USB, and you’re concerned about Windows 11 compatibility. Let’s go through this step by step and address both of your questions clearly.

About the USB connection failing during installation

Yes, this behavior is known with the P1102w on Windows 11. The installer briefly detects the USB connection, then fails because Windows 11 blocks or drops legacy driver handshakes used by this model.

This results in the printer never being fully installed, which is why only “Microsoft Print to PDF” appears.

The workaround is not using the original P1102w installer, but installing a generic HP Universal Print Driver (UPD – PCL6) and then binding it to the printer manually.

How to install the printer successfully on Windows 11 (USB or Wi-Fi)

Download and install HP Universal Print Driver PCL6 (not HP Smart, not the P1102w full package).

Do not connect the USB cable yet.

Go to Settings → Printers & scanners → Add device → “The printer that I want isn’t listed.”

Choose Add a local printer or network printer with manual settings.

If using USB: select USB001 (Virtual printer port for USB).

If using Wi-Fi: choose TCP/IP Device, enter the printer’s IP address, and set Device type to TCP/IP.

When prompted for a driver, select HP Universal Printing PCL6.

Finish the wizard, then connect the USB cable (if using USB) and power-cycle the printer.

About Windows 11 compatibility status

You are correct: the P1102w is not officially supported on Windows 11, and the compatibility list is accurate.

However, Windows 11 still allows printing through class drivers and universal drivers, which is why some users report success.

Success depends on bypassing the legacy installer and using the Universal PCL6 driver instead.

Why printing works from your iPhone but not the PC

iOS uses AirPrint, which is independent of Windows drivers.

This confirms the printer hardware and Wi-Fi radio are working correctly.

The issue is strictly Windows 11 driver compatibility, not the printer itself.

Important expectations going forward

Scanning and advanced utilities are not supported for this model on Windows 11.

Basic printing should work reliably once installed via Universal PCL6.

Firmware updates or reinstalling the original HP software will not resolve this issue.

I hope this helps.

I'm glad I could help! 😊 If this resolved your issue, please mark it as "Accepted Solution" and click "Yes" on "Was this reply helpful?" Your feedback not only keeps us going but also helps others find the solution faster! 👍✨

Take care and have an amazing day ahead! 🚀

Best regards,

[WillyBII]

When I get to the screen that says Add a local printer or network printer with manual settings, that option is greyed out.  I cannot choose it.  I followed each step you sent.  What's my next option? 

[WillyBII]

One other note is, I am unable to utilize the Wi-Fi function because my PC does not have Wi-Fi capabilities.  what I can do, however is I can plug in a dongle and turn the PC into a Wi-Fi connection. before I do that I would prefer to use the printer via the USB cable. Therefore please respond to above question with the issue that I have with the one command greyed out.  If you can come up with a solution to help me with the fact that one item is grayed out, then we can move on from there.  

[WillyBII]

Kuroi

I'm checking to see if you saw my reply.  Please do not close this case.  I am still having issues w installing the printer.  I wrote about the issue on 12/26/2025.  

[Kuroi_Kenshi]

Hi,

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We're looking forward to helping you resolve this issue! 

Stay tuned, and thanks for your patience! 

Best regards,